To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: ARRS MEETING: New, Spacious MRI Machine Can Examine Joints In Motion URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/6EF2E.htm Doctor's Guide April 27, 1998
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- April 27, 1998 -- A new type of open magnetic resonance imaging system, called Magnetic Resonance Therapy (MRT), is making it possible for physicians to watch joints in motion and reach into the unit to perform joint examinations on patient during scanning, a Stanford study shows. The results of the study were presented today at the 98th Annual Meeting of the American Roentgen Ray Society held in San Francisco. The vertically open MRI unit makes it possible to watch what happens as the patient moves. This enables physicians to see subtle shifts in the joint that might indicate instability or another problem, explained Dr. Gabrielle Bergman, lead study author and section chief for muscoskeletal radiology at Stanford University Hospital in Stanford, CA. This new technique is one step beyond open MRI, Dr. Bergman said, because the patient can walk into a vertically open MRI scanner and sit on a chair or stand up while the examinations are performed. "Patients can perform motions they say are causing pain and we can watch what is happening inside the joint as they do it," she said. The unit provides enough room for the patient to sit, stand or lie down within the scanner. There is also is enough room for a physician to stand on either side of the patient to perform tests, Dr. Bergman said. The unit is equipped with a screen so that the physicians in the scanner can see the MR images as they appear. There is about a 1.5-second delay, she said. Like a regular MRI, an exam in this kind of vertically open MRI unit is painless and non-invasive. A small device called an MR tracker is placed on the joint the physician wishes to examine. The MR tracker looks much like a stethoscope -- it has a flat, oval-shaped surface that is attached to the patient's skin using tape or Velcro. The tracker therefore follows the body part during motion, and ensures that the same part of the joint is imaged each time, Dr. Bergman said. "The MR tracker enables us to scan exactly the region we want to scan and we know we are seeing exactly the same area each time," Dr. Bergman said. Vertically open MRI is revolutionary for the study of joint motion and joint instability problems, Dr. Bergman said. There are currently only three units like this in the United States and about 15 world-wide. However, Dr. Bergman and her team are looking for ways to adapt the MR tracker so that it also can be used on regular MRI machines. The American Roentgen Ray Society is dedicated to the advancement of medicine through the science for radiology. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.